Book Review: The Difference A Day Makes by Carole Matthews

William and Amy are happily married, have 2 lovely children and both have great career in the world of television as well. Life is treating them well, but when Will suffers a heart attack on the underground, he makes the momentous decision not to go back to work... ever. Amy can't believe he'll stick to it, and so is horrified when Will decides to buy a delapidated old country house and move the family halfway across England to live there. Amy isn't cut out for farming or the slow pace of country life, but she wants to adapt to make her husband happy.

But when tragedy strikes, can Amy hold it altogether for the sake of their 2 young children? Will young vet Guy be able to help Amy not only with her animals but with rebuilding herself too? This is a tale of living the dream... but what happens when it's not your dream but someone elses?

Even though she has a very large catalogue of books, Carole Matthews' isn't actually an author I have read all that many books by! My first of her books, It's A Kind of Magic, was good but not really my cup of tea. So when I was sent this by the publishers for review, I hoped it was a little more down to earth as the plot sounded exactly like something I would like to read. Amazingly, this is Carole's 13th novel, and her latest (book 15!) is due out early next year entitled It's Now or Never. The pretty orange cover of this book gives an impression of summer but I actually found it to be a great winter read as there are some touching Christmas scenes in here!

Book Review: The Jewel Box by Anna Davis

Grace Rutherford loves living in 1920's London. She's got a good job in advertising, and has a column in a great newspaper writing under the pseudonym of Diamond Sharp which tells ladies in London of the best places to go and the in-fashion haircuts to have too... a 1920's 'IT' girl if you will. Grace meets famous writer Dexter O'Connell and begins a passionate affair with him, swept up with the romance and excitement of the moment, and the pair have fun.

But when Grace is introduced to her sister Nancy's new friend John Cramer, Grace begins to find herself having feelings for him too even though she knows her sister adores him. As she woos both men, she finds they are bitter enemies but it isn't clear why. Can Grace discover the truth behind the animosity and will she be able be to choose between Dexter and John once and for all?

When I first saw this book, I adored the cover with its blue theme and foil highlights but I wasn't sure the story was my cup of tea. I'm not overly keen on books set in anything but a modern time, but I was really determined to give this a go as it sounded so interesting, and I am really glad I did because I think this is a real gem of a story and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. This is author Anna Davis' 5th novel - Anna used to work as a columnist for The Guardian newspaper and at a literary agency as well, so she has plenty of experience with writing and this really shows throughout the book.

Book Review: All I Want Is You by Martina Reilly

All I Want Is You tells us the story of Poppy Furlong. Poppy has grown up in a wealthy family, always having the best of whatever she wanted and never having to work for it either. But Poppy gets a shock when her husband Pete comes home one day with a shocking revelation about his successful Architects business. Poppy's life is thrown into disarray as she has to give up her beautiful house, settle in to a more surburban area than she is used to, as well as coping with her wild and difficult 6 year old. Poppy isn't used to being challenged, but she's about to face some pretty big ones...

Martina Reilly is actually the same person as writer "Tina Reilly", she has just changed her first name to apparently appear more grown-up, and has changed the cover style of her books from loud and garish, to more mature and chic. I wasn't too annoyed at picking this up thinking it was a new author to discovering it was someone I'd read much before as I did enjoy her books but I was unsure whether she would have changed her writing style as well as her name....

Book Review: Last Christmas by Julia Williams

Cat and Noel Tinsall are having a few troubles in their marriage at the moment. Cat is struggling to juggle her home life with her job as a columnist, and Noel is scared of being made redundant, something he doesn't want to share with his wife.

In the small village of Hope Christmas near to where Noel's engineering company is building an eco-town, the residents there are gearing up for Christmas. Marianne is still reeling after being dumped by Luke, her fiancée; and farmer Gabriel is helping his young son Stephen get over the abandonment of his mother Eve.

Will all 4 be able to get over their worries before the festive season is upon them once more? Or is their Last Christmas their last happy one?

When I heard that Julia Williams was bringing out a Christmas-themed novel, I was really excited because a) I love Julia's book and b) I absolutely adore Christmas. I was even more happy when I saw the cover of the book for the first time - it really captured the essence of Christmas in one picture and couldn't wait to read it. As soon as it came through my letterbox, I picked it up ready to devour and did so within a few days... I couldn't put it down! Suffice to say it's put me right in the Christmassy mood even though it's only early November, but there you go! This is Julia Williams' third novel following Pastures New (which I loved) and Strictly Love.

Book Review: Jumping in Puddles by Claire Allan

Rathinch is a small Irish town with a lot of people who aren't necessarily friends, but Detta is set to change all that with her 'Single Parents' group. She wants to get them all talking, and despite their initial reluctance, they soon find themselves making steadfast friends and suprising themselves along the way too.

Niamh has just lost her husband Seán in a car accident, leaving her alone with their young twins... but is it all as it seemed for Niamh and Seán? Ruth was left along when her husband James ran off with a younger woman, leaving her mothering their 3 chilren alone... but Ruth is hiding a devastating secret she won't let get out. Liam is a single dad as it was his wife who ran off with Ruth's husband, but the pair don't talk as Liam wants his wife back. Finally, teen mum Ciara makes up the group and is unsure about hanging out with people her own mum's age. Ciara is keeping her baby's daddy a secret but is it for good reason, and will the older adults help her let go of her demons?

Can Detta help these people find friendship and confidence once more? And what is Detta's secret too?

I read and loved Claire Allan's second book Feels Like Maybe earlier this year and I absolutely loved it, so I jumped at the chance of reading Jumping In Puddles which is Claire's 3rd book. It was published in September by Irish publishers Poolbeg, and its gorgeous bright cover screams "chick lit", something I love! The book focuses on a group of friends who have their own problems, but how talking them through just might help them to get through the worst of it. Claire has the knack for writing believable characters who you can imagine are real people, and stories that are very realistic as well.

Book Review: The Baby Group by Rowan Coleman

The main jist of the story is that we are introduced to the main character who is Natalie, a young successful business woman who falls pregnant after a fling with a handsome man. She keeps the baby and decides to raise him on her own, while her mother still thinks she is travelling in China!

Natalie is embarrassed about being a single parent, so takes it upon herself to invent a husband who works in Italy, but the story gets harder and harder to keep up.... with hilarious results!

She doesn't have any friends with children, and she realises that she needs to get out with her newborn son more but doesn't know where to start, much like most new mums.

By having some work done at her house, she meets her first "mummy" friend, a 16 year old girl who is wiser than her years let on. It makes Natalie realise that she needs some friends, and attends a baby class where she meets another mum. The group of friends continues to grow, even including a stay-at-home dad, a nice modern inclusion! There are a wide range of characters from a teenage mum Jess, a single mum who is Natalie, a SAHD; Steve and an experienced mum whose life starts to fall apart around her; Meg. The book is very well written, and the variety of characters makes for interesting reading and it is nice to see different types of people coming together with a similar interest.

Book Review: Second Time Lucky by Sophie King

Once Bridgewater House was the stately home of Lord Pearmain. Now, however, the house has been divided into separate residences for financial purposes. The Lord is forced to live in one of the humble apartments alongside his newly acquired housemates, among them a newly-divorced mother-of-three, a legendary screen goddess of the 1940s, and an American PhD student. Over an eventful year their children, a burglar, a friendly dog, a very capable cleaner, and at least one ghost will transform all of the residents' lives.

The story follows the lives of the residents of Bridgewater House, an old mansion which has been converted by developers into smaller individual flats.It begins by telling us the story of Louise, who is moving out of her family home with her 3 children Nick, Tim and Justine after her marriage has fallen apart.She is moving into Bridgewater House, and her children are not necessarily pleased about it.We quickly meet another resident of Bridgewater House, Mollie DeMay, a famous elderly actress who has been recently widowed. She still sees her husband in her head, much to the annoyance and worry of her son Nigel. Marcie, another home-owner, is a young American woman desperately trying to have a baby with her English husband David. She does not get on with her step-children but her husband does not see the dire treatment she gets from them, leaving you to feel somewhat sympathetic to poor Marcie.